Getting a doctoral degree is the pinnacle of higher education. In psychology, you can do so with a Ph.D. or a PsyD. Though these degrees are slightly different, the preparation they provide ensures you’ll be a competent practitioner no matter what field of psychology you choose.
As a doctoral student in Michigan, you have many different choices for completing your degree. Schools around the state—public, private, small, and large—offer doctoral preparation in this field. If you want to join the ranks of the most qualified psychologists in the state, then you might consider completing your education in one of the following programs in Michigan.
Psychology PhD and PsyD Programs in Michigan
Listed below are some of the popular schools offering psychology PhD and PsyD programs in Michigan:
- University of Michigan
- Eastern Michigan University
- Western Michigan University
- Michigan School of Psychology
- National University
- The Chicago School
- University of Arizona Global Campus
To find out how we select colleges and universities, please click here.
University of Michigan
Ph.D. in Psychology
At the University of Michigan, you have your choice of six concentration areas for the Ph.D. in Psychology. These areas run the gamut from clinical science to developmental psychology to social psychology. Other areas you can choose from include the following:
- Biopsychology
- Cognition and Cognitive Neuroscience
- Personality and Social Psychology
You can also choose one of three joint programs of study if you wish. These programs include Social Work and Psychology, Psychology and Women’s and Gender Studies, or a combined program in Education and Psychology.
Assuming you choose the clinical science option, you’ll participate in a five-year, on-campus program that’s accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA) and the Psychological Clinical Science Accreditation System (PCSAS). During your time in the program, you’ll be trained in clinical skills that allow you to assess, diagnose, evaluate, and treat clients with various psychopathologies.
First and foremost, you’ll take part in an interdisciplinary curriculum that exposes you to many different aspects of psychology. On the one hand, you’ll gain the necessary understanding of psychological research that enables you to learn more about the field and hone your skills even further. On the other hand, you’ll get much-needed clinical training that allows you to put your learning into practice before you graduate and join the workforce.
Other goals of this program include the following:
- Provide training in teaching skills that promote scientific thinking and an improved understanding of human behavior.
- Promote an understanding of ethical decision-making, especially as it pertains to research, clinical practice, and teaching.
- Facilitate an understanding of appropriate psychological research methods, including the importance of being sensitive to cultural and other diverse needs.
You’ll gain the skills as you complete a comprehensive curriculum. The curriculum includes coursework, research opportunities, and teaching opportunities that develop you into a holistic practitioner of psychology.
Some of the research-related coursework you’re required to complete focuses on topics like research methods, statistics, and research ethics. These courses are foundational for your understanding of how to conduct research but are also important for your growth and development as a professional.
Additionally, you’ll take courses that focus on clinical science-related topics. For example, the required coursework includes classes on assessment, treatment, and psychopathology. Furthermore, you’ll take cognitive and affective neuroscience, which explores how the brain processes cognitive and emotional tasks.
This program has a significant cultural component, too. You’ll take courses like Multicultural Psychology, which teach you how to see psychological issues through the lens of culture, religion, ethnicity, and numerous other demographic factors. Likewise, you’ll develop an understanding of the importance of social and cultural context when assessing clients for mental illnesses.
Aside from the coursework you’re required to complete, you must also take part in a rigorous teaching curriculum. You’ll learn how to create effective lessons, appropriate assessments, and practice course delivery to ensure your students have the best opportunities to succeed. By and large, your teaching assignments will be at the undergraduate level.
The admissions criteria are as follows:
- Have an undergraduate degree from an accredited college or university.
- Submit official transcripts from every college or university you’ve attended.
- Provide three letters of recommendation.
- Submit an academic statement of purpose that sums up your academic and research history as well as outline your career and educational goals.
- Submit a personal statement in which you discuss how your personal background and experiences motivated your decision to apply to this program.
Eastern Michigan University
Ph.D. in Psychology
The Ph.D. in Psychology from Eastern Michigan University is a full-time residential program focusing on preparation for a career in clinical psychology. More than that, this program is preparatory for administrative and oversight positions in community mental health. In that regard, you’ll acquire the necessary skills to be a practicing clinical psychologist, but also one who manages lower-level therapists within the mental health care delivery system.
This five-year program is accredited by the APA and requires 63 credits to graduate. The curriculum is divided into multiple parts: core coursework, courses on individual differences, and classes in evidence-based therapy. Moreover, you’ll take classes in the following areas:
- Biological Bases of Behavior
- Assessment
- Treatment
- General Electives
Within the core coursework, you’ll explore topics related to Psychological Statistics, Research Design, and Scientific and Professional Ethics. These courses aren’t just important for conducting appropriate psychological research. Instead, these classes help you become a more competent and ethical practitioner.
You’ll also take courses on specific areas of psychology. For example, you’ll take Social Psychology, Developmental Psychology, and Psychopathology. Additionally, you’ll complete coursework related to Cognitive Assessment, Clinical Organizational Management, and Diversity Issues in Clinical Populations. Given the breadth of the core courses, you’ll get training in a wide swath of psychological concepts.
Next, you’ll complete classes related to individual differences, evidence-based therapy, and biological bases of behavior. These classes might include the following:
- Personality: Theory and Research
- Child and Adolescent Psychopathology
- Behavioral and Other Evidence-Based Psychotherapies
- Physiological Psychology
- Cognitive Neuroscience
From there, electives fill out the remainder of the coursework. You can take classes like Behavioral Assessment, Clinical Behavior Analysis, and Treatment of Anxiety Disorders. Or, you might choose to take classes like Psychopharmacology, Clinical Neuropsychology, or Performance-Based Assessment of Personality.
Other program requirements focus more specifically on clinical preparation. The master’s pre-practicum requires you to complete 200 or more hours at the university’s on-campus clinic. Then, once you enter the doctoral phase of the program, you’ll finish a 120 to 150-hour onsite practicum. Both of these practicums include a variety of tasks, from answering phones to conducting client intakes to completing clerical work.
After that, you’ll complete a 500-hour internal practicum during which you’ll focus on accruing clinical house by working with clients at the on-campus clinic. You’ll typically see 1-2 clients a week, but as you progress in your training, you’ll see 4-6 clients on a regular basis.
Following the 500-hour internal practicum, you’ll complete a 300 to 400-hour external practicum. During the practicum, you’ll work part-time (roughly 20 hours a week) for two years. All of these practicum experiences lead up to the clinical doctoral internship—a 2,000-hour professional work experience, during which time you’ll develop highly advanced clinical psychology skills.
You can apply online if this program seems like a good fit. To apply, you must first meet the following requirements:
- Have a bachelor’s degree or higher from an accredited college or university. You must have a minimum of 20 undergraduate semester hours in psychology, including, but not limited to, research methods or experimental psychology and statistics.
- Have a competitive undergraduate GPA that’s 3.5 or higher.
- Submit official GRE scores for the quantitative, verbal, and writing portions of the exam.
- Submit a personal statement and an additional essay in which you address your academic interests and outline your work experience in research or clinical settings.
- Possess the personal qualities necessary to be successful in graduate study.
Western Michigan University
Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology
Western Michigan University’s Clinical Psychology Ph.D. program is accredited by the APA and requires six years to complete. Of the six years, five are spent completing coursework while the sixth year is dedicated entirely to a clinical internship.
The program’s emphasis is on the biological approach and focuses equally on empirical research and practice. The coursework you complete also exposes you to many different content areas within the field of psychology.
Though this program culminates in a Ph.D., you’ll first complete a master of arts degree if you don’t already have one. If you do already have a master’s degree, you must complete 95 credits of doctoral-level work. This work is divided amongst advanced coursework, practica, and internship experiences. Furthermore, you must complete a master’s thesis, a doctoral dissertation, and pass a comprehensive examination.
The foundational coursework explores essential topics such as the following:
- Experimental Foundations
- Individual Differences in Behavior
- Cognitive and Affective Aspects of Behavior
- Biological Aspects of Behavior
- Social Aspects of Behavior
Also, courses on the history of psychology, multicultural and diversity issues, and human development are required. You must successfully pass a course in Professional and Ethical Issues in Psychology as well. This course introduces you to various eventualities you may encounter as a professional therapist. For example, you might role-play a situation in which a complaint is filed against you by a client so you can work through various professional responses with your classmates.
The clinical core component of the curriculum focuses on the skills, techniques, and competencies you need to master to be an effective clinician. You’ll take a two-part course in Psychological Assessment that enables you to test clients for various disorders (e.g., learning disabilities, personality disorders, or cognitive disorders). You’ll also take a course on Behavior Therapy, which is an advanced survey of behavioral counseling techniques you can use to help your clients work through psychological issues.
In addition to the clinical courses discussed above, you must also take a class on Psychotherapy Theory and Methods. In this class, you’ll examine humanistic, integrative, and cognitive theories, as well as psychoanalysis and psychodynamic theories. Regarding psychotherapeutic methods, you might discuss the following:
- Systemic Therapy
- Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy
- Dialectical Behavior Therapy
- Person-Centered Therapy
- Exposure Therapy
Research is a significant component of this program, too. You’ll learn how to devise a research plan, implement it, and conduct thorough and ethical research. Moreover, you’ll gain an understanding of how to report data related to your research. The master’s thesis and doctoral dissertation are both part of this experience.
You’ll also get professional clinical experience during your time in this program. First, you’ll complete a two-part clinical practicum in psychology. These experiences introduce you to the inner workings of being a professional psychologist. In addition to assisting your supervisor in conducting therapy sessions, you’ll also learn how to bill insurance for services rendered, maintain case notes, and perform other day-to-day tasks.
Following the practicum is the internship phase of the program. You’ll spend a year accruing the 2,000 hours to satisfy the requirements to graduate. The internship takes place off-site in an approved clinical psychology setting, such as a community mental health center, rehabilitation facility, inpatient treatment center, or hospital.
To apply, you must first fulfill the following requirements:
- Have a bachelor’s degree or higher from an accredited institution.
- Submit official transcripts from every college or university you’ve attended.
- Provide a personal statement.
- Provide a professional goals statement that describes the following:
- Your research and clinical experience
- Your research and clinical interests
- Your practicum experience
- Your post-graduation professional goals
- Your preferred clinical program faculty to conduct research with.
- Submit a curriculum vitae.
- Submit three letters of recommendation.
- Provide a writing sample, such as an honor’s thesis, class paper, or publication.
- Complete the program’s supplemental questions.
Michigan School of Psychology
PsyD in Clinical Psychology
The PsyD in Clinical Psychology from the Michigan School of Psychology is an APA-accredited program that requires three years of residential work prior to a year-long clinical internship. The program is shorter than most since this is a post-master’s degree, making it a great option for current master’s-level professionals to complete a terminal degree.
Your training in this program will adhere to the practitioner-scholar model. This means that you’ll get advanced, applied training in clinical psychology while also becoming a scholar in this field. To help you achieve these ends, you’ll complete a comprehensive curriculum of foundational, research, and clinical-related coursework. Among the first classes you’ll take include the following:
- History and Systems of Psychology
- Identity Formation
- Social Bases of Behavior
- Child and Adolescent Psychotherapy
- Psychopathology and Personality Change
In addition to these classes, you’ll explore numerous types of psychological practice. For example, the Cognitive and Affective Bases of Behavior class focuses on the relationship between the brain and behavior. You’ll discuss topics like thinking, motivation, emotion, memory, and attention, to name a few.
Regarding research-related coursework, you’ll complete studies in Statistics, Psychometrics, Quantitative Research, and Qualitative Research. These classes help prepare you for the dissertation component of the program, which requires numerous semesters of advanced, independent research. You’ll begin dissertation preparation early on, continue your work through the advanced stages of the degree program, and defend your dissertation prior to starting the internship year.
The clinical-related coursework you’re required to complete focuses on practical issues in the field. For example, you’ll take classes like the following:
- Supervision in Psychology
- Consultation in Psychology
- Clinical Health Psychology
- Psychology of Trauma
- Existential and Humanistic Psychology
In addition, you’re required to complete field experiences to help you hone your skills even further. There’s a three-part practicum that provides the initial clinical training experience you need to become an effective clinician. These practicum experiences prepare you for the internship, which is a progressive learning experience, during which you acquire more skills and take on more responsibilities as a pre-practice psychologist.
Some of the activities you might participate in during the internship include consultation, psychological testing, treatment planning, and assessment. You’ll learn how to conduct psychotherapy and evaluate treatment outcomes as well. The internship ensures you have experiences working with clients of diverse backgrounds and needs to prepare you for clinical practice upon graduation.
You can apply to this program by filling out an application to the Michigan School of Psychology. The criteria for applying are as follows:
- Have a bachelor’s degree or master’s degree in psychology, counseling, or social work from an accredited college or university.
- Have an undergraduate GPA of 2.5 or higher or a graduate GPA of 3.25 or higher.
- Submit official transcripts from every college or university you’ve attended.
- Provide a curriculum vitae or resume.
- Provide three letters of recommendation from references who can speak to your academic and professional capabilities.
- Complete any other admissions requirements as noted by the university.
You can submit GRE general test scores as part of your admissions file if you wish. This is not a requirement, though.
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